Kent Police bicycle patrols will return to the streets in May after a six-month absence.
“They will be coming back into service around May 1,” said Kent Police Assistant Chief Pat Lowery in an email. “Our goal is to return four officers (two, two-person teams) to the streets at that time, though we will likely have to train some of those officers for this unique assignment. That training may push back the actual deployment date for one of the teams by a couple of weeks.”
Police Chief Ken Thomas made the official announcement about the return of the bicycle patrols at a Feb. 20 community meeting.
“The unit was temporarily demobilized last November when staffing needs and availability required demanded that we re-assign those bodies to regular patrol duty,” Lowery said. “It was our thought at that time that their absence would pose a less significant interruption to service given the early hours of darkness and typically adverse weather that tend to limit their use or effectiveness during that time of the year.”
Lowery said the bicycle units would patrol in areas where their presence may have the greatest affect.
“Typically that has been the downtown/Transit Center area though we will move them according to where crime hot spots may pop up,” he said. “They are one part of a coordinated response plan so bad guys should anticipate seeing them anywhere at any time.”
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